4, interquartile range 33.5 seconds); traditional 251.4, interquartile range 66.3 seconds); [P = 0.81]). Agreement between ultrasound reviewers was good (agreement 83%; k = 0.69; 95% CI, 0.49-0.88). Images were determined to be of adequate quality for interpretation in 41/50 (82%) and 43/50 (86%) in the handheld and traditional devices, respectively (P = 0.786). Neither time to image acquisition nor image quality differed between the handheld and traditional devices. The handheld device may be an alternative for use in RUSH exams.Emergency department (ED) crowding is a major problem across the world. Studies investigating the association between crowding and mortality are many, but the quality is inconsistent and there are very few large, high-quality multicenter studies that are properly designed to deal with confounding due to case mix. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between ED crowding and 30-day mortality.
We conducted an observational cohort study at all 7 EDs in Stockholm Region, Sweden 2012-2016. The crowding exposure was defined as the mean hourly ED census during the shift that the exposed patient arrived, divided with the expected ED census for this shift. The expected ED census was estimated using a separate linear model for each hospital with year and shift as predictors. The exposure was categorized in 3 groups reference (lowest 75% of observations), moderate (75%-95% of observations), and high (highest 5% of observations). Hazard ratios (HR) for all-cause mortality within 30 days were estimated with a Cox proportional hazards model. The model was adjusted for age, sex, triage priority, arrival hour, weekend, arrival mode, chief complaint, number of prior hospital admissions, and comorbidities.
884,228 patients who visited the ED 2,252,656 times were included in the analysis. The estimated HR (95% confidence interval) for death within 30-days was 1.00 (0.97-1.03) in crowding category 75%-95% and 1.08 (1.03-1.14) in the 95%-100% category.
In a large cohort study including 7 EDs in Stockholm Region, Sweden we identified a significant association between high levels of ED crowding and increased 30-day mortality.
In a large cohort study including 7 EDs in Stockholm Region, Sweden we identified a significant association between high levels of ED crowding and increased 30-day mortality.Telemedicine is used by emergency departments (EDs) to connect patients with specialty consultation and resources not available locally. Despite its utility, uptake of telemedicine in EDs has varied. We studied characteristics associated with telemedicine adoption during a 4-year period.
We analyzed data from the 2014 National Emergency Department Inventory (NEDI)-New England survey and follow-up data from 2016 and 2017 NEDI-USA and 2018 NEDI-New England surveys, with data from the Center for Connected Health Policy. Among EDs not using telemedicine in 2014, we examined characteristics associated with adoption by 2018.
Of the 159 New England EDs with available data, 80 (50%) and 125 (79%) reported telemedicine receipt in 2014 and 2018, respectively. Among the 79 EDs without telemedicine in 2014, academic EDs were less likely to adopt by 2018 (odds ratio, 0.12; 95% confidence interval, 0.03-0.46). State policy environment was not associated with likelihood of adoption. In 2018, all 7 freestanding EDs received telemedicine, whereas only 1 of 9 academic EDs (11%) did.
Telemedicine use by EDs continues to grow rapidly and by 2018, &gt;3 quarters of EDs in our sample were receiving telemedicine. From 2014 to 2018, the initiation of telemedicine receipt was less common among higher volume and academic EDs.
3 quarters of EDs in our sample were receiving telemedicine. From 2014 to 2018, the initiation of telemedicine receipt was less common among higher volume and academic EDs.Our investigation compared throughput metrics and utilization measures for freestanding emergency departments (FSEDs) versus hospital-based emergency departments (HBEDs) of similar volumes in the United States.
This study is a cross sectional survey of 183 FSEDs and 317 HBEDs located across the United States using the Emergency Department Benchmarking Alliance (EDBA) Database. We measured common emergency department (ED) throughput metrics. Primary outcomes included overall length of stay, length of stay for admitted, and length of stay for treated and released patients. Outcomes were weighted based on the proportion of ED volume per facility as per a prior pilot study. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to adjust for measured differences between FSEDs and HBEDs. The variables that were controlled for in regression analysis included geographic location of the ED (urban, suburban, and rural), percent of high acuity capacity, ED volume, percentage of patients arriving via emergency medical services as compared to HBEDs (95% CI = 25.5 to 63.0).
In this study of similarly sized EDs in the United States, throughput metrics for FSEDs tended to be significantly shorter from the arrival of the patient until their departure, except for patients requiring hospital admission. For measures favoring FSEDs, throughput times range from 20%-50% shorter than HBEDs.
In this study of similarly sized EDs in the United States, throughput metrics for FSEDs tended to be significantly shorter from the arrival of the patient until their departure, except for patients requiring hospital admission. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/bgb-290.html For measures favoring FSEDs, throughput times range from 20%-50% shorter than HBEDs.Overdiagnosis of urinary tract infections (UTI) among people living with dementia is a nationally recognized problem associated with morbidity from antibiotics as well as multidrug-resistant bacteria. However, whether this problem also exists in the emergency department (ED) is currently unknown.
To examine the association between dementia and UTI diagnosis in the ED we performed a retrospective analysis of Medicare beneficiaries older than 65 years old who presented to an ED in 2016. A diagnosis of UTI was present in 58,580 beneficiaries, and 321,479 beneficiaries without a diagnosis of UTI served as the comparison group. Our logistic regression model controlled for dementia, older age, female sex, Medicaid status, skilled nursing facility residence, history of prostate cancer, recent urinary catheter use, recurrent UTI, and multiple comorbidities.
In our model, people living with dementia had over twice the odds (odds ratio=2.27, 95% confidence interval=2.21, 2.33) of being diagnosed with a UTI in the ED compared to those without dementia despite their lower prevalence of symptoms and signs localizing to the genitourinary tract (3.